1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to transmitting a secondary signal with a video signal, and more particularly to dynamically controlling the injection level of the secondary signal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The video spectrum in common commercial formats, such as NTSC, PAL, and SECAM, is not efficiently used. To overcome this inefficiency, several different video spectrum formats have been proposed. However, these formats, such as Japanese HDTV, cannot be received by the conventional television receivers in common USe.
Another approach to efficiently using the spectrum of a video signal is to time multiplex the video signal with a secondary signal. This approach is used for transmitting close captioned information with the video signal. In particular, the close captioned information is transmitted during the vertical blanking intervals. A specially designed receiver may receive and display close captioned information, while commonly available commercial receivers may display the transmitted signal without any perceptible visual defects in the image. However, the data transmission rate is low, thus, limiting the amount of information that may be transmitted.
Another method, is to place a secondary signal in the 2-3 Mhz range, which lies between the peak portions of the chrominance and luminance spectrum envelopes and coinciding with the chrominance spectrum. An example of this is shown in "A Novel Television Add-On Data Communication System", by Patrick T. King in Vol. 33 of Journal of the SMPTE (January 1974). The method uses odd multiples of one half the scanning rate, which results in the spectral energy of the secondary signal overlapping with the chrominance information. The resultant transmitted data rate of the secondary signal must remain low (i.,e., under 21 kilobits per second) and the secondary signal must be transmitted at low power to avoid interference with the chrominance information. The low power injection level of the secondary signal increases the likelihood of transmission errors, especially if there is a long or noisy transmission link between the transmitter and receiver.
These approaches are inappropriate for many transmitters, such as used in satellite links or cable television, have limited transmit power amplification (or "head room"). The "head room" limits the amount of power available for the transmission of a signal. Where a secondary signal is transmitted with a primary signal, the transmission of the secondary signal uses some of the power amplification. Hence less power amplification is available for the primary signal. Still further the amplified secondary signal appears as noise to the receiver of the primary signal. Thus, when the secondary signal is injected, the signal to noise ratio for the primary signal may be substantially decreased, increasing the level of interference and the possibility of transmission errors.
Therefore, it is a first object of this invention to provide a system having a more efficient use of the video spectrum in common commercial formats. It is a second object of this invention to provide for more efficient use of the video spectrum without interfering with the transmission of the underlying video signal. It is yet a further object of the invention to permit the reduction in transmission errors of a secondary signal.